Former Enron executive to plead guilty
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former Enron executive Michael Kopper will plead guilty to wire fraud and money laundering charges, the first admission of guilt in the federal investigation of the fallen energy giant.

Martha Stewart lawyers deliver records to panel
WASHINGTON -- Lawyers for domestic marketing powerhouse Martha Stewart handed over more than a thousand pages of e-mail and phone records Tuesday to a House investigative panel examining her sale of ImClone stock.

Criminal law graduates recognized
St. Johns River Community College's Criminal Justice Center Law Enforcement Basic Recruit class was recognized at a graduation ceremony last month in St. Augustine.

Column of the Day: Bridge Results
Early reports from the first three days of the four day sectional tournament held last weekend in Jacksonville listed local club members Marlise Cusick, Jim Mahorner, Gene Rector, Randall Rathjen, Jake Dieter, and Frankie and Larry Dittman among the top fifty masterpoint winners of the 204 total players in the various games.

Column of the Day: Ask Officer Joe
The St. Augustine police Department's Question and Answer column, Ask Officer Joe, is available to anyone who is interested in asking a question of Officer Joe Bowen.

People: Robert De Niro to sue photo agency
NEW YORK (AP) -- Robert De Niro filed notice of a $1 million lawsuit Monday over a photograph of him and fellow actor Sean Penn blowing out their birthday candles at a private party last year.

People: NAACP raps the vote
NEW YORK -- Hip-hop impresario Russell Simmons joined forces with the NAACP and the Rock the Vote campaign to relaunch a project aimed at getting people ages 18 to 24 into the voting booth. Rap the Vote will feature public service announcements by hip-hop mogul Sean "P. Diddy" Combs and actress Rosie Perez, among others, as it attempts to inform the nation's youngest voters about their electoral responsibilities.

Not much to put up on the fishing board
Some weeks are better than others -- and this one of the 'others'. There isn't much to put on the board and compounding the situation is the fact that there is nothing to blame in the way of weather.

Ice cream sundae sauces
HYDE PARK, N.Y. (AP) -- There are tough decisions to make throughout life, but few more important to an ice cream sundae connoisseur than how to top one's ice cream.

Reflections on vacation travel
Can it be any more unpleasant? Anyone who has traveled since 1973 knows how air travel has changed. Really, perhaps they could poke us with sharp sticks while we wait in endless lines.

Low-fat cooking: Jambalaya
Do you love jambalaya, that rich classic of Creole cooking? Do you shy away from the thought of its high fat content?

Recipe Finder: Cheese Bread
Elizabeth M. Hayes of Greensburg, Pa., writes that she lost her recipe for a cheese batter bread made with yeast, and says it was delicious.

Don't be so quick to knock knee surgery
When a recent study found that a popular knee operation was only as good as a placebo for arthritis, some sufferers misconstrued the results, assuming that no surgery would help them.

Dr. Donohue: Fetal alcohol syndrome an avoidable tragedy
DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I hope you can help me with some information about alcohol use during pregnancy. What is the chance that two or three drinking binges (four to eight drinks) during the second trimester have caused brain damage? I am overcome with guilt over my stupidity. -- Anon.

Fighting new sources of childrens' lead exposure
Old, lead-containing paint has long been considered the major source of lead poisoning in children. But California health officials recently identified certain lead-contaminated candy, pottery and folk remedies from Mexico as a growing threat to children.

Surgeons' soap-up may be scrubbed
When the question is which method gets a surgeon's hands cleanest, an analysis conducted by researchers in France says the time-honored pre-surgical scrub works as well as new high-tech cleaners containing alcohol.

Property Transfers
August 22, 2002 -- The following real estate transactions were recorded at the St. Johns County Courthouse recently. The list is compilied by Equifax, and amounts of sales are based on documentary tax stamps.

Crude oil climbs above $30 a barrel
The price of crude oil rose above $30 a barrel Tuesday for the first time in 15 months as traders worried about how a U.S. war with Iraq would affect the flow of oil from the Middle East.

CNN, CBS both paid for video said to be from al-Qaida
NEW YORK-- CNN and CBS both paid for videotapes that depict al-Qaida poison gas experiments, but insisted Tuesday -- without naming their sources -- that the money didn't go to Osama bin Laden's terrorist organization.

CDC confirms Kentucky man dead from West Nile
FRANKFORT, Ky. -- A man who was hospitalized with West Nile encephalitis died this week, Kentucky health authorities said Tuesday. It was the state's first confirmed case of the disease in a human.

Bush says he'll consult allies on Iraq
CRAWFORD, Texas -- President Bush, confronting skittish allies overseas and naysayers at home, asserted Wednesday that ousting Iraq's Saddam Hussein "is in the interests of the world" but indicated the United States is in no hurry.

U.S. shreds millions of visa applications each year
WASHINGTON -- Despite a post-Sept. 11 emphasis on sharing information, the government each year deliberately shreds millions of unsuccessful immigration applications containing personal details and photographs that some officials say could help in the war against terrorism.

Teens say marijuana easier to buy than beer
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Teenagers say marijuana is easier to buy than cigarettes or beer -- one in three say they can find it in a matter of hours -- but only 25 percent admit trying it, a national survey finds.

FDA clears way for trial of drug to treat West Nile virus
NEW YORK -- The Food and Drug Administration has approved the first national trial of a drug to treat the West Nile virus, which has spread across half the country and killed at least 31 people since it was first detected in the United States three years ago.

Kurdish extremists linked to al-Qaida draw renewed interest
WASHINGTON -- U.S. intelligence agencies have stepped up monitoring of an Islamic extremist group operating in northern Iraq that may have ties both to the al-Qaida terrorist network and to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, officials said Tuesday.

Former Enron insider pleads guilty
WASHINGTON -- Winning the guilty plea of an important former Enron Corp. insider, the Justice Department on Wednesday set sights on its biggest target yet in the massive fraud investigation: Enron's former chief financial officer.

Correction
Information in Wednesday's Record on Page 2A about tickets for the Atlantic Shakespeare Company's performances of "Much Ado About Nothing" was incorrect.

Julington development seat battle among 3
The Julington Creek Community Development District Seat 4 race is now down to three people.
Jayme G. Alfano has withdrawn from the Sept. 10 primary race for business reasons.

Beach access a hot topic in PVB
PONTE VEDRA BEACH -- About 150 people gathered Tuesday night to talk about beach access -- or the lack thereof, depending on who you ask.
The debate between the public's right to access the beach and the rights of oceanfront property owners is an ongoing one that's brought up every few years.

For The Record
Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson plans to hold a breakfast reception Friday for attorney Wayne Hogan of Jacksonville, Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives. The event will be from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at Sawgrass Marriott Resort and Beach Club in Ponte Vedra Beach.

Police Report: Hastings home burglarized
The following was compiled from police reports collected from the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office (SJCSO), St. Augustine Police Department (SAPD) and St. Augustine Beach Police Department (SABPD).

Hurricane Andrew reclassified
MIAMI -- Scientists confirmed Wednesday what many South Floridians have long suspected: Hurricane Andrew was even more ferocious than first thought when it barreled through the region nearly a decade ago.

Rose Anne Weissenburger
George and Rose Anne Weissenburger, of Brooklyn, N.Y., and residents here for the past 20 years, Rose died Aug. 16, 2002, in St. Augustine and George died Aug. 19, 2002, at Shands Hospital, Jacksonville, both from injuries substained in an automobile accident. He was a retired fire fighter with the New York Fire Department.

Wayne Kerry Tanner
Wayne Kerry Tanner, 67, of St. Augustine, died at the Earl B. Hadlow Center, Jacksonville. He was born in Hollister, Fla., and had resided in St. Augustine for the past 50 years. He was a retired St. Johns County Sheriff's Deputy and was retired from the U.S. Marine Corps.

Jack A. Boyce
Jack A. Boyce, 83, a resident of St. Augustine for the past 20 years, died Aug. 19, 2002, at Flagler Hospital. He was a native of San Francisco, Calif., and a retired chief in the U.S. Navy. He was also a member of the St. Augustine Ancient City Sam's Club. He was affiliated with Reconciliation Episcopal Church.

George Weissenburger
George and Rose Anne Weissenburger, of Brooklyn, N.Y., and residents here for the past 20 years, Rose died Aug. 16, 2002, in St. Augustine and George died Aug. 19, 2002, at Shands Hospital, Jacksonville, both from injuries substained in an automobile accident. He was a retired fire fighter with the New York Fire Department.

Betty Jane Dyer
Betty Jane Dyer, 74, a resident of St. Augustine for 31/2 years, died Aug. 17, 2002, at her home. She was a native of Madison, Wis., and a retired retail sales clerk.

Donald Owen Kendall
Donald Owen Kendall, 55, of St. Augustine, died Aug. 18, 2002 in Flagler Hospital. Born in Logan, W.Va., he had lived in St. Augustine for eight years, was a teacher at Bartram Trail High School, a member of Gideons International, and of Moultrie Baptist Church, where he was a Deacon and a Sunday school teacher.

Barbara Ann Baisden-Kane
Barbara Ann Baisden-Kane, 34, a resident of St. Augustine and formerly of Camden, N.J., died Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2002, in St. Augustine. She moved back to St. Augustine in 1998 coming from New Orleans. She was studying to become a computer technician.

Walter George Ellerton
Walter George Ellerton, 65, of Murphy, N.C., and St. Augustine, died Monday, Aug. 19, 2002 at Murphy Medical Center. He was a native of Bergen County, N.J. He was a U.S. Navy veteran and a member of the Trinity Episcopal Church in St. Augustine. He retired as supervisor from the Department of Corrections in St. Johns County after 33 years.

Floyd Wilson Linder
Floyd Wilson Linder, 85, of Orangedale, died Sunday, Aug.18, 2002, at home. He was born in Smoaks, S.C., and was a longtime resident of the area. He was employed as a civil servant with the United States Government and served his country as a veteran in the U.S. Marine Corps. He also was a member of Morocco Temple of The Shrine.

People: NAACP raps the vote
NEW YORK -- Hip-hop impresario Russell Simmons joined forces with the NAACP and the Rock the Vote campaign to relaunch a project aimed at getting people ages 18 to 24 into the voting booth. Rap the Vote will feature public service announcements by hip-hop mogul Sean "P. Diddy" Combs and actress Rosie Perez, among others, as it attempts to inform the nation's youngest voters about their electoral responsibilities.

Letter: Friends proud of library
Editor: On Aug. 11 the beautiful, newly expanded Ponte Vedra Beach Branch Library opened to the public. The board of directors of the Friends of the Library is most grateful to each and every member of the FOL.

Editorial: Around the world
As the flood waters in Germany subside they reveal an altered political scene as well as a damaged physical landscape. The disaster has been good for Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and bad for his Christian Democrat rival Edmund Stoiber, who until recently seemed to have a very good chance of winning in the German elections in five weeks.

Letter: New movie theater needed
Editor: With the massive growth in this area, there is no doubt that a new cinema complex would be a positive addition, offering a greater choice selection and eliminating the need to travel to Jacksonville. For about four years, the former site of Winn-Dixie on A1A (formerly State Road 3) has been available for use.

Perspective: Provocation exists for war against Iraq
The emerging core argument against war with Iraq is that such a war would constitute an unprovoked attack against a sovereign state, a conflict that would break with American tradition and ethics and, ultimately, would be illegitimate.

Editorial: Odds and ends
Some well-meaning candidates for local offices, many of them new to political races, are irritated by St. Augustine's fluid policy on political signs.

Williams sisters top seeds at U.S. Open
NEW YORK -- Four Americans top the women's seedings at the U.S. Open for the first time since 1983, led by Serena Williams, who'll be aiming for her third straight Grand Slam title.

Morning Briefing
Tiger Woods first broke into national prominence when he won three consecutive U.S. Junior Amateur titles and followed that by winning three consecutive U.S. Amateur championships -- a string of 36 straight USGA matches.

Marlins: About to strike out?
MIAMI -- As the grounds crew grooms the infield shortly before the game on a balmy weeknight, the ballpark is so empty the rakes smoothing the dirt can be heard from the upper deck.

Angels shock Yankees
NEW YORK -- Scott Spiezio hit a two-run homer in the 11th inning and the Anaheim Angels matched last year's victory total by beating the New York Yankees 5-1 Wednesday.

Unbeaten Japan routs Guam10-0 at LLWS
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. -- Tatsuhiko Numakura hit a two-run homer and Yoshinori Satoh struck out eight in the four-inning game as Sendai, Japan, beat Agana, Guam, 10-0 Wednesday in the first international semifinal at the Little League World Series.

Same goal for Tiger
SAMMAMISH, Wash. -- The week after the final major championship of the season usually finds Tiger Woods on a golf course with thick trees lining both sides of the fairway.

Cowboys' Ismail likely to miss season
SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Dallas Cowboys receiver Raghib Ismail will undergo neck surgery Wednesday to repair damage from a collision with a teammate last week in practice.

Rough day for Johnson
GAINESVILLE -- Two-time All-Southeastern Conference free safety Todd Johnson was knocked unconcious during Florida's scrimmage Wednesday night and was taken to a local hospital for observation.

Jaguars' defense going on the offensive this season
JACKSONVILLE -- Now that training camp is over, Jaguars cornerback Fernando Bryant is speaking publicly again.
So far, Bryant says, he likes what he sees from Jacksonville's revamped defense, mainly because it allows him to be more aggressive.

Activists angered by deaths from preventable diseases
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa -- AIDS killed 3 million people last year. The year before, tuberculosis killed 1.7 million and malaria more than a million others. Millions more died from diarrhea and other easily preventable diseases.

Handyman arrested in Hebrew University blast
JERUSALEM -- Israeli security forces have arrested a Palestinian who worked at Hebrew University, accusing him of planting a bomb that killed nine people in the university cafeteria -- including five Americans -- and belonging to a Hamas cell involved in suicide bombings, officials said Wednesday.

Zimbabwe forces white farmers to abandon land
HARARE, Zimbabwe -- After his arrest for defying a government eviction order, white farmer Roy Fuller, 60, salvaged his family photographs and valuables and left his home of 36 years.

Barghouti denies ordering attacks
JERUSALEM -- Jailed Palestinian uprising leader Marwan Barghouti says he is a politician and did not order attacks on Israelis, but wrote Tuesday in response to questions submitted by The Associated Press that armed militias have "contributed" to the Palestinian struggle.

In flooded Europe, thousands start trying to rebuild
ROTTENEGG, Austria -- Tightlipped and teary-eyed, Henrietta Karl leaned on her shovel Tuesday amid the tangle of muddy debris that trashed her home and offered this requiem to Europe's worst flooding in well over a century: "Now the real work begins: rebuilding a life."

Iraq says Abu Nidal killed himself; U.S. is skeptical
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Abu Nidal, once the world's most feared terrorist, ended his life with a gunshot to the head rather than face an Iraqi court for allegedly communicating with a foreign country, the head of Iraqi intelligence said Wednesday.

China calls flood emergency as lake threatens villages
CHANGSHA, China -- Officials were given emergency powers Wednesday to combat floodwaters in central China's Hunan province, where tens of thousands of workers were trying to hold back the rising waters of a lake that threaten to swamp a city and farming villages.

Musharraf grants himself broad powers before election
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Despite widespread criticism, President Gen. Pervez Musharraf unilaterally amended the Pakistani constitution Wednesday, granting himself sweeping powers -- including the right to dissolve parliament-- and extending his term in office.

Police end siege at Iraqi embassy in Berlin
BERLIN -- Without firing a shot, masked German police commandos freed two senior diplomats from armed men who stormed the Iraqi embassy Monday, bringing a bloodless end to a five-hour hostage drama by a previously unknown group opposed to Saddam Hussein.

Bosnians remember massacre victims
KORICANSKE STIJENE, Bosnia-Herzegovina -- Hundreds of Bosnians whose relatives were shot and pushed into a steep ravine during the country's war returned to the scene Wednesday to mark the 10th anniversary of the massacre.

Five arrested for alleged plot to attack Bologna basilica
ROME -- Italian police arrested four Moroccans and an Italian who they say may have been planning to attack a Bologna basilica with a 15th-century fresco inside that depicts the Muslim prophet Muhammad in hell, being devoured by demons.

Prosecutor says rebel fire likely caused helicopter crash
MOSCOW -- A military helicopter crash that killed 114 people in Chechnya was most likely caused by a rebel attack from the ground, Russia's chief prosecutor said Tuesday, and a news agency reported that a missile launcher had been found nearby.